Howard Lake-Waverly Herald, Jan. 31, 2000

Montissippi Park project still a priority

By John Holler

For the last several years, the Wright County Parks Department
has hoped to get assistance from the state for improvements to Montissippi
Park in Monticello.

As the project is now in the second of three phases - a
phase that includes parking lot improvements and construction of a play
structure and shelter facility, Parks Administrator Mark Mattice came before
the Wright County Board at its Jan. 25 meeting seeking approval to again
apply for state grants for the project.

The project, which is estimated at a cost of $100,000,
was rejected by the state in 1999, which got a pair of commissioners to
question the feasibility of getting approval this year. Commissioner Elmer
Eichelberg said that restroom facilities at Schroeder and Collinwood Parks
are both in need of repair and Commissioner Ken Jude asked if the Montissippi
Park project was something that was prioritized on the list of parks projects
for which the county seeks completion.

Commissioner Pat Sawatzke said the Montissippi project
has been in the works for almost a decade and the only stumbling block has
been state-aid funding.

"Since 1993, this has been a priority for grant applications,"
Sawatzke said. "This isn't anything new. We've prioritized this for
six or seven years and it's been a matter of taking time to get it done."

Mattice said that $25,000 has been budgeted for the project
and, if approved by the state, another $25,000 will be budgeted for 2001
to pay the county's share of the improvements. The board voted 4-1 to proceed
with the grant application process. Jude voted against the motion, saying
that other parks in the county have more pressing needs than Montissippi
Park.